Sempra Energy

• Sempra distributes natural gas and coal energy in the southwest United States and in northern Mexico.

• Although Sempra deals with cleaner-burning natural gas, much of its business is still in coal, which is a prime contributor to global warming.

• Work with Co-op America's campaign to take action against climate change and find ways to reduce energy consumption at Go Green.

-- Profile Updated 06/12/2008

About Sempra Energy

In the US Sempra distributes natural gas to almost 5.6 million customers and electricity to 1.4 million customers through its Southern California Gas (SoCalGas) and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) utilities. In fiscal 2006 Sempra reported revenues of $11.7 billion and has a workforce of 14,061.

Campaigns

Say 'NO' to Coal and Climate Change

Tell the CEOs of power companies Peabody…

read more

Tell the CEOs of power companies Peabody, Dominion, and Sempra and their Board members to heed the call of shareholders and their power customers and halt climate change, stop building new coal plants, and shift the billions of dollars they are spending on coal into green energy like solar and wind as well as energy efficiency.

Sempra Energy paid $5.7 million to the customers of its San Diego Gas & Electric Co.…

read more

Sempra Energy paid $5.7 million to the customers of its San Diego Gas & Electric Co. subsidiary to end a lawsuit filed by State Attorney General Bill Lockyer and the California Public Utilities Commission. According to the lawsuit, Sempra was responsible for the shortfall in natural gas, which caused SDG&E to cut gas supplies to major customers for 17 days in 2000-2001. This action disrupted service, raised energy prices, and forced power plants to use more polluting fuels. The settlement money will be used to reduce the cost of buying power for its 1 million electricity customers.

Sempra proposed a payment of $377 million to settle lawsuits against the company for price-fixing and withholding energy supplies …

read more

Sempra proposed a payment of $377 million to settle lawsuits against the company for price-fixing and withholding energy supplies during a time of energy shortages. The city and county of Los Angeles, the city of Long Beach and aluminum parts company Continental Forge Co. were among the plaintiffs taking legal action in California. Sempra settled a separate lawsuit brought by the state of Nevada for $30 million. Plaintiffs argued that Southern California Gas Co. and San Diego Gas & Electric, both subsidiaries of Sempra Energy, colluded with El Paso Corp. to "carve up" energy markets and avoid competition to keep consumer prices high.

The Nevada Clean Energy Coalition (NCEC) sponsored a campaign against Sempra Energy, focused on the company's plans to build a 1,4…

read more

The Nevada Clean Energy Coalition (NCEC) sponsored a campaign against Sempra Energy, focused on the company's plans to build a 1,450 megawatt coal-fired power plant in the Nevada desert 110 miles north of Reno. NCEC cited the following reasons against permitting Sempra’s proposed Granite Fox Power Plant:

The plant would release over 50 toxic pollutants, including arsenic, lead and mercury, into the air

Power produced would be exported to Southern California, where this type of plant would not even be permitted

Coal-fired plants are the largest single source of mercury pollution, found to affect development in children even at low levels of exposure

The plant would consume 14.2 million gallons of desert ground water daily, over 5 billion gallons a year, diverting water from plants and animals such as deer, elk and wild horses

The plant’s emissions would equal the addition of approximately two million cars to the roadways

Sempra has chosen not to follow through with plans for the coal-fired power plant, however NCEC is concerned about the sale of Granite Fox to yet another company with coal plans.

Shareholders have filed the following resolution regarding Sempra's role in climate change:
"The shareholders request a report [r…

read more

Shareholders have filed the following resolution regarding Sempra's role in climate change:
"The shareholders request a report [reviewed by a board committee of independent directors] on how the company is responding to rising regulatory, competitive, and public pressure to siginificantly reduce carbon dioxide and other emissions from the company's current and proposed power plant operations. The report should be provided by September 1, 2006 at a reasonable cost and omit proprietary information."

Sempra Energy came under attack by environmentalists in 2002 for its planned construction of a new gas-fired power plant in Mexica…

read more

Sempra Energy came under attack by environmentalists in 2002 for its planned construction of a new gas-fired power plant in Mexicali, Mexico, which critics argued was a strategic move to avoid U.S. emissions standards. Critics feared that Sempra’s facilities would increase carbon dioxide output in the area by 35 percent and environmental groups initiated a lawsuit to challenge U.S. permits for transmission lines from Sempra’s Mexican plants into California. Sempra chose to install scrubbers on its plant turbines, which have helped to curb its greenhouse gas emissions; however, the plant’s cooling system still requires 3 million gallons of water daily from the New River, a critical water source for the Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge.

Ecologists and residents of Ensenada, Mexico are protesting the building of a massive liquid natural gas (LNG) import terminal off…

read more

Ecologists and residents of Ensenada, Mexico are protesting the building of a massive liquid natural gas (LNG) import terminal off the coast of this area, which is home to seals, sea birds, and part of an important migration path for gray whales. Sempra Energy and Chevron officials insist that the terminal will not cause any disruption to wildlife in the area and that Mexico stands to benefit from the project, which will diversify its energy supply. However, Ensenada locals claim that noise, pollution and lights from the terminal will force sea life and birds away from the area.

Sempra Energy is set to receive supplies of natural gas from BP’s Tangguh gas field project in Indonesia’s province of West Papua.…

read more

Sempra Energy is set to receive supplies of natural gas from BP’s Tangguh gas field project in Indonesia’s province of West Papua. Indonesian military presence in Papua has grown as a means of dealing with civil unrest over the partitioning of Papua, and human rights groups fear that this will lead to an even higher instance of human rights violations. Human Rights Watch has appealed to President Yudhoyono to boost human rights protections for the people of Papua.